{"id":9661457,"date":"2025-12-19T14:55:41","date_gmt":"2025-12-19T14:55:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/?p=9661457"},"modified":"2025-12-19T14:55:41","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T14:55:41","slug":"managing-forgotten-childhood-memories-resulting-from-trauma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/?p=9661457","title":{"rendered":"Managing Forgotten Childhood Memories Resulting from Trauma"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\u201cIt\u2019s okay if you can\u2019t recall. Our subconscious is remarkably nimble. At times, it knows when to remove us, serving as a protective measure.\u201d ~Kathleen Glasgow<\/strong><\/p>\n

A few weeks back, I found myself crying in the park on what seemed like an ordinary summer day. I was out for a stroll with my dog, Boni, savoring the sunlight and the shade from the trees.<\/p>\n

Laughter filled the air from children whose joy was contagious. Two young girls were gleefully squealing, adorned in Hawaiian skirts and leis.<\/p>\n

Close by, a perfect birthday celebration was in full swing: tables laden with food and drinks, balloons everywhere, adults mingling, and children playing all around.<\/p>\n

The lively atmosphere made me happy for the birthday girl, leading me to ponder, \u201cWhat were my birthday celebrations like?<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

I found myself at a loss.<\/p>\n

I came to the realization that I couldn\u2019t reminisce about my birthday celebrations from a certain age onwards. It felt like running into a barrier. Tears started to flow as I repeated to myself, \u201cI can\u2019t remember!\u201d overwhelmed by sadness and frustration.<\/p>\n

Boni guided me as I tried to sift through my thoughts. \u201cYou can do this, Erika, keep going!<\/em>\u201d But I was unable. My last recollection of a birthday gathering was prior to the abuse. After that, there was nothing. I’m certain parties took place, but was there joy? I can\u2019t say.<\/p>\n

The concern isn\u2019t about the parties themselves; there likely were celebrations. The true sorrow was the realization that little Erika was so deeply wounded that she couldn\u2019t recall these cherished events.<\/p>\n

If you’ve experienced trauma, you might resonate with this and think, \u201cHow can we manage this?<\/em>\u201d It’s heart-wrenching to miss out on memories and discussions when your upbringing wasn\u2019t \u201ctypical\u201d or is lost to time.<\/p>\n

Yet, even in despair, there is hope. You can discover serenity, which I realized that day through five steps I learned on my healing path to confront emotions and reclaim my equilibrium.<\/p>\n

These steps can be beneficial whenever a memory\u2014or the absence of one\u2014triggers you.<\/p>\n

1. Recognize the pain.<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Pain needs to be acknowledged and recognized. Ignoring it leads to anxiety and numbness. Now, I embrace pain and tears since they signify the release of pent-up emotions.<\/p>\n

I started by validating my pain, talking to little Erika: \u201cI see your feelings. It hurts; you didn\u2019t deserve it. Embrace your emotions. I\u2019m here for you.<\/em>\u201d I allowed myself to mourn.<\/p>\n

Although it felt odd in the park, being surrounded by nature aided my emotional processing. The setting is crucial when navigating breakdowns.<\/p>\n

2. Comfort and stabilize.<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Once I acknowledged my emotions, I aimed to ground myself, recognizing that remaining in that emotional state for an extended period isn’t beneficial.<\/p>\n

I practiced deep breathing, caressed my arms, rubbed my palms together, and took quiet walks. The feelings lingered but began to lessen, and the panic faded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cIt\u2019s okay if you can\u2019t recall. Our subconscious is remarkably nimble. At times, it knows when to remove us, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9661458,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"Default","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9661457","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9661457","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9661457"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9661457\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9661458"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9661457"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9661457"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/spiritualjourneydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9661457"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}